AFL wants CPP expansion

The Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) is calling the Alberta government out on its stance against an enhanced Canada Pension Plan (CPP).

In a report released on November 16 by the AFL, It IS broke...so fix it!, the labour organization makes it clear that it believes the provincial government is not acting in the best interest of Albertans.

Alberta's Minister of Finance and Enterprise, Ted Morton, has said that raising CPP premiums will cause job losses in the province. However, the AFL claims there is no evidence to support that view.

"Experience with policy measures that increase payroll costs, including both payroll taxes and minimum wages, shows that the effects, if any, are so small that they are swamped by the normal ebbs and flows of economic activity," the AFL report says. "Extensive academic literature finds no basis for claims for long-term negative employment effects from payroll taxes."

The report goes on the say that pension coverage is weaker in Alberta than in other provinces and that Albertans are in fact, not better off in the current system than other Canadians, as their government suggests.

"So while the government of Alberta's opposition to an expansion of the Canada Pension Plan may serve the interests of the Canadian retail mutual fund industry and support the living standards of its high-flying leaders," the report boldly states. "It does not serve the interests of Albertans."